We’re at the dawn of the tablet era now. Earlier this month, Apple sold 3 million of its new iPad during the opening weekend, with some analysts expecting over 60 million of the tablets to be sold worldwide. What’s more, e-book readers are selling even more briskly than tablets. People are using those e-readers, too. On Amazon.com, books for its Kindle outsell its paper books.

What’s more, the explosion of e-books is putting pressure on publishers between demands for price cuts on one hand, and competition from independent authors like Amanda Hocking, who earned over $2 million selling e-books on her own before signing with a major publisher.

It’s no surprise, then, that publishers are turning to the app as a possible product for books moving forward. This has led to another movement towards enhanced books, particularly as apps for iPhone, Android, and other tablets. Are tablet apps the book of the future? In order to find out, I talked to authors, publishers, and app programmers, and read more than a few book apps.

Carisa Kluver's insight:

Nicely detailed article about the challenges for traditional publishers, the ways book apps stand out from other formats and advice for getting into this popula but fast-moving industry ...

“Parents are the primary educators of their children.” This phrase was echoed in my training as a health educator and social worker so often it became a mantra to me. Modern educators hear it a lot, although they may not always understand the core of what it really means. The primary, consistent and most influential teachers any child has are his or her own parents or caregivers. This seems obvious, but we often forget this in our interactions with parents and families of young children. We all think we know what’s best, whether we are a grandparent in the grocery store aisle, a teacher or social service provider.

Prendergast, Tess. Chapter Two: Children and Technology: What can research tell us?

In the first chapter of this free professional resource on the topic of young children and new media, Little eLit Ladies Campbell and Koester make a case and a call to action for librarians to become media mentors to support families. Young Children, New Media, and Libraries, the book, is unfolding in monthly releases, a chapter at a time and that can only increase its value. These dynamic thinkers in chapter one describe challenges to be met, such as “[t]he proliferation of digital content for children, and the mainstream interest in media consumption by young children.” They recognize opportunities to seize like inviting families to “break the paradigm of children interacting by themselves with a mobile device” by showing “parents how they can support their children’s engagement through joint use of media”.

This year, we take the primary question raised by [the 2014] debate, coupled with the results of last year’s survey, as a starting point and ask: What is the nature of the various publishing business models? Who takes on risk and how much? What are the rewards, and how are they split? And finally, given these arrangements, what do authors really get in the end?

This book award was begun to fill a gaping need in the world of children’s books. We have only two criteria here: literary merit and popular appeal. If it’s literary but unreadable, it’s re-shelved. Popular but dumb? It’s toast. But where does diversity fit into all this? We’ve been asking ourselves this even before our friends at We Need Diverse Books and KidLitCon turned up the volume this year on a much-needed conversation.

Carisa Kluver's insight:

Seven exceptional new finalists for the 2014 CYBILS book app award ... only one will win - announced Feb. 14, 2015!

Mobile is a major e-learning trend both educators and designers should watch closely in the upcoming year. Not only will mobile platforms provide an increasingly personalized experience, but also offer... more »

Last fall (2014) I participated in a survey of over 50 app reviewers by Big Ideas Machine, about how we decide which apps to cover, how many requests we get, how best to get our attention and other aspects of this new industry.

The results are very interesting, with just a few charts I’ve shared here. I found myself nodding my head often in agreement, although there are a lot of nuances to getting an app reviewed, especially depending on your app’s genre, audience and long-term value. I know I learned a lot!

Ever since e-books arrived on the scene, forecasters have said year after year that it’s only a matter of time before they ultimately edge print books out altogether. Now, however, some seem to think the opposite may be true: that the e-books market might be slowing down — or even drying up! — and print books may “win the war” after all.

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